by Sam Amick and Scott Gleeson, USA TODAY Sports

by Sam Amick and Scott Gleeson, USA TODAY Sports

Houston Rockets guard James Harden is off to a rapid start with his new team, leading the NBA in scoring at 35.3 points a game.

But the former sixth man of the year says his departure from Oklahoma City Thunder might have been avoided had things been handled differently in a Yahoo! Sports report.

Harden expressed frustration that he only had an hour to consider a final four-year, $54 million offer.

"After everything we established â?? everything we had done â?? you give me an hour?" Harden told Yahoo! Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski. "This was one of the biggest decisions of my life. I wanted to go home and pray about it. It hurt me. It hurt."

He said in the report, "Who knows? Another day, who knows what another day would've done?"

Harden ultimately chose to leave a team he went to the NBA Finals with last season and parted ways with U.S. Olympic gold medal-winning teammates Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. He signed a five-year $80 million deal with the Rockets.

Thunder general manager Sam Presti's responded to Harden's comments.

"You know, I think the focus right now for us is on our team, and our players, and on the group that we have in place," Presti told USA TODAY Sports on Tuesday. "We certainly wish James the best. He was a great player for us. But right now, as a team, we have to move forward and that's where our focus is.

"We have a great deal of respect for James Harden, and we're thankful for his contributions. But at the same time, we're in a position where we're moving forward as a team and an organization."

The truth is that Harden and his agent, Rob Pelinka, spent four months negotiating over the deal that they didn't get done. Harden was well aware of the possibilities that would be in play without one, and the irony here is that his decision is -- for the time being -- looking like a wise one.

Harden not only landed the maximum contract that he so desired, but he looked worthy of it while averaging 35.3 points, 6.3 assists, 6.3 rebounds and 1.7 steals in his first three games with Houston (wins over Detroit and Atlanta and a loss to Portland).

The Thunder -- who received veteran shooting guard Kevin Martin, rookie shooting guard Jeremy Lamb, two first-round picks and a second-round pick in the deal -- entered Tuesday's night's game against Toronto with a 1-2 record without Harden.

In the Yahoo! Sports report, Harden dismissed the talk that he made his decision for money. He felt the Rockets fit him perfectly as a natural leader and go-to player after taking a "backseat" with the Thunder as the third option behind Durant and Westbrook.

"I heard a lot of those things," Harden said. "I heard that I was greedy; that I didn't care about winning; heard the questioning of my loyalty. And I'm thinking: 'Of course I want to win. I've been winning my entire life.'

"I was there with talented guys in Oklahoma City, some All-Star guys, and I would've been in the back seat there â?? which I was fine with â?? but I wouldn't have gotten the chance to show how talented I really am. It's a different opportunity for me here."

"Everybody has their own opinion about me [as a role player and focus of a team]. I can do both: I'm versatile. Growing up in college, in high school, I was the focal point. I was the leader. I was the go-to guy. I was the third overall pick. I took a back seat and did whatever it took for the team to win. Some nights I scored, some nights I passed. Whatever was needed to win. Now, I'm back to my old ways: Needing to be the leader, needing to score. In any situation, I'm going to be good."